Roundup: Syrian troops besiege strategic town amid fierce fights

The Syrian troops backed by a big
firepower unleashed on Sunday a military operation to storm a key
town in the northern outskirts of the capital Damascus after fully
besieging it, as the rebels rained down Damascus with mortars as
part of their reprisal.

The forces have fully besieged the
town of Qara in the al- Qalamoun mountains north of Damascus and
near the border with Lebanon, Syria's al-Watan newspaper said
Sunday.

The road that connects Damascus
with the central province of Homs and also leads to Qara has been
cut off after several instances of rebel sniper fire on civilian
cars.

Local media reports said that Salim
Barakat, a rebel commander in Qara, was killed on Sunday during the
intense clashes there. Yet, there has been no report about the
military advancement in Qara but activists said that the rebels
were still determinant to hold their ground despite the heavy
artillery shelling by the army.

But al-Watan said Sunday that "the
army has rocked the al- Qalamoun mountains with artillery fire and
airstrikes that targeted the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front and their
military equipment and vehicles."

The importance of al-Qalamoun
emanates from its strategic location as it's connected with the
Lebanese borders and constitutes a key base for the rebels, as the
area is the northern entrance of Damascus.

For the government troops,
controlling the area is important to secure the Damascus-Homs
international road and also because of its proximity to a number of
Syrian military bases.

As the clashes were raging in Qara,
huge displacement movement has been reported as residents of Qara
have fled to the nearby Syrian towns of Nabek, Deir Attieh and the
town of Ersal in northern Lebanon.

The military operation in the
northern rim of Damascus came after a series of swift and effective
operations in the southern and eastern countryside of Damascus as
part of the military tactic to dislodge the rebels from key areas
of Damascus, Homs and also the northern province of Aleppo.

In the southern countryside of
Damascus, around 400 armed rebels have reportedly turned themselves
in to the Syrian troops, who have stormed the town of Babbila
Sunday, according to al- Mayadeen TV.

Meanwhile, the opposition activists
said that the rebels Free Syrian Army (FSA) detonated on Sunday
evening a military base in the Damascus' suburb of Harasta, killing
at least 31 government troops. However, the report couldn't be
independently verified with the absence of official comments.

Also in Damascus, at least eight
people were killed Sunday in separate mortar attacks that targeted
several districts. Pro- government activists said 20 mortar shells
landed on several districts of Damascus Sunday.

The rebels have opted for
indiscriminate mortar attacks against several districts of the
capital, particularly the southern and eastern parts as they are
close to the rebel-held areas of Jobar, Mlaiha and Douma. Endi

The Syrian troops backed by a big firepower unleashed on Sunday a military operation to storm a key town in the northern outskirts of the capital Damascus after fully besieging it, as the rebels rained down Damascus with mortars as part of their reprisal.